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EBULLETIN ARCHIVE
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June 1 , 2006
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COEJL Community E-bulletin #32 |
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Coalition on the Environment and
Jewish Life
Help support COEJL's programs like our Global Warming Campaigns:
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Get involved locally:
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IN THIS ISSUE:
TAKE ACTION: Urge Support for the US Israel Energy Cooperation Act
CELEBRATE: Spend Shavuot in the Great Outdoors
LEARN: Shavuot: Humility and Blessings
IN THE FIELD: Going for the Gold!
GO GREEN: Travel Green
DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY TO HELP STOP GLOBAL WARMING!
During Shavuot we are reminded of the bounty of the two harvests, barley and wheat, that sustained our ancestors. So it is especially fortuitous that COEJL will receive a bountiful harvest in the form of a grant enabling the Jewish community to join in a coordinated effort to address the global warming crisis. While many are struggling to break the DaVinci code, COEJL is working to answer the age old riddle: How Many Jews Does it Take to Change a Light Bulb?
We need you and each member of your community to be one of the many Jews to take this one simple action--to install an energy efficient, cost effective compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Email barbara@coejl.org TODAY to be a part of COEJL's CFL campaign to help stop global warming! In order for us to make a huge impact, we need everyone to make this commitment.
And just as the bounty of the harvests sustained our ancestors, as part of the COEJL community we count on all of you to help sustain and nourish us through your generous donations. At this time, please consider a contribution to COEJL.
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| TAKE ACTION |
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Urge Support for the US Israel Energy Cooperation Act
"Both [Israel and the United States] share a desire for energy security and prevention of global warming. Therefore, through the United States- Israel Energy Cooperation Act and other joint frameworks, in collaboration with our US counterparts, Israel will increase its efforts to find advanced scientific and technological solutions designed to develop new energy sources and encourage conservation."
-- Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
May 24, 2006, Address before Joint Session of US Congress
Click here to learn how you can urge your representative in Congress to cosponsor the United States Israel Energy Cooperation Act.
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| CELEBRATE |
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Spend Shavuot in the Great Outdoors
Contributed by Rabbi Warren Stone, Temple Emanuel, Kensington, MD and COEJL Board Member
Shavuot celebrates the receiving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. In honor of Shavuot, organize a hike up a local regional peak. Carry up a mini Torah and then with drama, song, brief study and a picnic, share the story of Shavuot. Enjoy the vistas and consider a meditation promising to care for this region and sacred earth.
Invite children and elders to join in on the hike with you. Reenact the story of Moses coming down Sinai twice; once when witnessing Aaron and the Golden Calf and then a second time with a radiant face sharing the 10 commandments. Invite others to play the role of narrator, Moses, Aaron, Miriam and the voice of God. Enjoy being on the mountain top. Have a conversation reflecting on how Moses destroyed the first tablets. Are we destroying the earth? Do we need a new 11th commandment: "Thou shalt not destroy a sacred and fragile Earth!"
Pack a dairy lunch which is traditional on Shavuot (for example, string cheese, cheese and tomato sandwiches, pudding, yogurt covered pretzels, or cottage cheese and fruit). If you follow a vegan diet, fortunately there are substitutions for all of these dairy products. Celebrate after the hike with a picnic and blessings.
More Shavuot Links:
Stop to Enjoy the Flowers
First Fruits, Flowers and Green Plants
The Bringing Of The First Fruits And The Giving Of The Torah
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| LEARN |
Shavuot: Humility and Blessings
by Rabbi Neal Joseph Loevinger, COEJL Board Member
Jewish environmental thinking brings together strands of traditional Jewish theology and key points of contemporary environmentalism; among those strands is the recognition that we have to move from thinking of the Earth as a mere resource for human benefit to something that is fundamentally not "ours" to do with as we please. Some call this the ethic of stewardship, drawing a distinction between a steward and a master: the steward recognizes that he is not the owner, but one appointed to guard and protect something precious. Stewardship implies humility, thoughtfulness, and self-control, which any environmental thinker would agree are qualities that our society needs to rebalance its relationship with the Earth we live on.
Click here to read more of “Shavuot: Humility and Blessings.”
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| IN THE FIELD |
Going for the Gold!
The Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation (JRC) in Evanston, IL is going gold! JRC has received a substantial grant from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation to support the construction of a new synagogue which is being designed under LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold standards. The LEED Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. The gold standard is one of the highest energy efficient standards in the country. To obtain gold standard status, LEED participants earn points for incorporating green features. The more points, or green features used, the higher rating. JRC went for the gold! JRC's new home will be high performance, energy efficient, and sustainable. This 450 household congregation aims to inspire and be a model for other sustainable buildings. In the words of the JRC president, Alan Saposnik, respect and conservation of the Earth is a "moral and ethical imperative for Jews in the 21st century." We couldn't have said it better. Kol HaKavod!
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| GO GREEN |
Travel Green
This spring and summer why not travel with Earth consciousness? There are many options to help you literally go green. You can begin your trip with a stay in a green hotel:
A listing of green hotels by state
Ways to make reservations for Green Travel
To avoid plane travel, why not visit a local state park?
US /Canadian State Parks
While you’re on the road, make an effort to tread lightly.
Tips on making less environmental impacts while traveling
Here are some options for traveling the vegetarian way:
Free printable vegetarian travel guides by state
Vegetarian travel specialist
May all your travels be safe and sustainable!
Tefilat Haderech, the Jewish Travelers Prayer
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COEJL is a program of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
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